There’s so much going on in the next four weeks, between the Super Bowl; the continued rollout of awards season, culminating in the Oscars on March 2; and whatever shock and awe President Trump unleashes, that it’s hard to imagine how fashion shows will carve out any space in the attention economy.
As if on cue, the ready-to-wear season, which begins this week in New York before rolling on through London, Milan and Paris, is raising the stakes. Not only will there be major designer debuts (the kind that could change how you dress), but also high-wattage events and, just as significantly, a huge trend that has already emerged. Here’s what you need to know.
Separation of the sexes is over.
Back in 2016, Gucci, under the direction of Alessandro Michele, made the revolutionary decision to combine its men’s and women’s lines rather than presenting separating shows, as was traditional. Before you could say “runway revolution!” other brands jumped on the dual gender bandwagon. It made both narrative and economic sense. After all, the sexes do not exist separately. (They don’t even shop separately.) So why should their clothes be shown separately?
Well, it turned out, because women’s wear tends to be so much more eye-catching than men’s wear — so much sparklier, so much wackier — men’s wear ended up with the short end of the marketing stick. Presto: After a few seasons, fashion houses, including Gucci, began to revert to the old ways, the better to get more attention for the men’s lines. Not all of them, of course, but enough to make the move feel like a fad, rather than a systemic sea change.
Now the pendulum has changed course. Even Gucci is rethinking its decision, and this season Sabato De Sarno, Gucci’s creative director, will open Milan Fashion Week with his first combined show. The debuts of Veronica Leoni at Calvin Klein and Haider Ackermann at Tom Ford will also showcase dual gender shows, as will Simone Bellotti’s Bally show (possibly his last, as rumor has it he may be moving to Jil Sander), not to mention Fendi.
If three examples of anything counts as a trend, this is a big one.
Paris is getting a Met Gala.
Fendi has not had a women’s wear designer since Kim Jones left his post in October, but that isn’t stopping the label from holding a celebratory 100th birthday catwalk extravaganza during Milan Fashion Week.
For one collection only, Silvia Venturini Fendi, the head of men’s wear and accessories and, as a granddaughter of the founders, the only Fendi family member officially still at the house, will be designing men’s and women’s wear, which will be united in a legacy-honoring blowout. It’s not the first time Ms. Fendi has taken the design reins (she also stepped in after Karl Lagerfeld’s death in 2019), but while she clearly understands the DNA of the label since it is also her DNA, there’s no sign she will be making the post permanent.
Then, on the evening of the first day of Paris Fashion Week, the Louvre will hold its answer to the Met Gala: the Grand Dîner du Louvre, a black-tie fund-raiser honoring “Louvre Couture,” the museum’s first-ever fashion exhibition, which recently opened. To be held in Le Cour Marly, the sculpture-filled glass-roofed courtyard where Nicolas Ghesquière once held a Louis Vuitton show, with an after-party under the glass pyramid. With tables already snapped up by major fashion houses, it is bound to be the most glamorous party of the season.
The only questions: Will Oscar-goers be able to make it to Paris in time? And will the museum do it again next year?
Also, here’s a crib sheet for designer debuts.
There are so many designer debuts this year that it’s almost impossible to keep track. They started in January with Peter Copping’s freshman Lanvin show and will pick up steam on Day 2 of New York Fashion Week, when Veronica Leoni unveils her take on Calvin Klein, which has not been on the runway since 2018. Given the lack of other major draws in New York — Ralph Lauren is sitting this one out — all eyes will be on Ms. Leoni, a mostly unknown Italian and one of the rare women atop a major global label.
In Milan, Lorenzo Serafini will be stepping into the shoes of his mentor, Alberta Ferretti, as will Julian Klausner at Dries Van Noten in Paris. Given that they were inside appointments of designers who had spent years working with the founders they replaced, expect continuity, not radical change.
For that, look to Sarah Burton, the longtime Alexander McQueen designer who left that house in 2023 and is returning to fashion as the creative director of Givenchy, which has been without a designer since Matthew Williams left in early 2024. (Whew! Got that?)
Mr. Williams was brought on to give Givenchy a streetwear edge, but the appointment never made much sense, and Ms. Burton, who is known for her soulful but adventurous imagination and edgy tailoring, should bring some clarity to the label.
Finally, Haider Ackermann, who has likewise been away from fashion for the last five years (save for a much-heralded guest designer collection for Jean Paul Gaultier couture in 2023), will be unveiling his first collection for Tom Ford. The very short stint of Peter Hawkings, Mr. Ford’s former head of men’s wear, was marked by a faithful (perhaps too faithful) representation of Mr. Ford’s greatest hits. Mr. Ackermann’s job is to redefine the label for a new era.
Can Tom Ford exist without Tom Ford? It remains to be seen, but one thing’s for sure: Barring scheduling conflicts, the Haider Ackermann superfans Timothée Chalamet and Tilda Swinton will most likely be in the audience.
Thanks to the designer churn, a number of fashion houses are sitting out this season as their new creative directors settle into their jobs and prepare for their September shows. Bottega Veneta (where Louise Trotter has just arrived), Celine (Michael Rider), Proenza Schouler (where Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez recently stepped down), JW Anderson and Loewe (where the designer, Jonathan Anderson, is widely expected to be moving to Dior) are all in a holding pattern.
As for Chanel, still awaiting the arrival of Matthieu Blazy, its new designer, the collection will once again be designed by the studio.
The post The First Big Trend of the Season Is Already Clear appeared first on New York Times.
